The Hasbeenshave a new track out - You and Me - It is quite low key and dark - exactly like the video. Not that much happens but it is very cool and strangely compelling - it is seedy in a kind of glamorous way if that's possible. I don't know much about The Hasbeens - they are dutch and only have 3 or 4 records out on Clone. I listened to their track 'Make the World Go Away' continuously through 2007/2008 (check it out below) and love the sound of the new one - very cool electro synth.
Nujabes is a Japanese hip hop producer and DJ - this tune is called アホな走り集 - what? You can't read that? Peasant. It's called Luv (sic) pt. 2 featuring Shing02 - It's a sweet tune. But even if you're not into hip hop you should check out the video - a load of Japanese mentalists all giving it socks. And if you're not into that then just fast forward to 3.45 to see a really really fat Japanese guy comin'atcha in slow motion. It's mesmerising. And if you're not into that, then there's no pleasing you.
More Yo! Gabba Gabba - this is a video from the robot episode with Money Mark singing about making music with electricity and his robot friends. It's a pretty chilled cool tune too. What a show!
This is a great video for Dan Deacon's song Paddling Ghost directed by Natalie van den Dungen. featuring a little pirate ghost and a slightly creepy but strangely endearing Dan Deacon puppet in a Steve Zissou role.
and speaking of Steve Zissou (any excuse) :
The tune Steve is dancing to is called Ping Island - it's by Mark Mothersbaugh from Devo. He composes for movies and video games among other things such as painting and even hosting a drawing segment for kids on the best kids' show ever: Yo! Gabba Gabba.
If you use Gmail you can now avail of of their 'mail goggles' lab - if you try to send an email really late at night at the weekend it stops you, makes you do some sums and if you get them wrong - NO MAILING FOR YOU, BOOZY! - And voilá! Morning time comes and a hungover but surprisingly regret free you thanks wise ol' Gmail for looking out for you.
Hmmm. I worry that if I used this feature and Gmail told me to go to bed and sleep it off I would view this as a challenge- I'd stay up drinking and honing said email PLUS an even more offensive one to the good people at Google until the ban was lifted - whereupon I would send both immediately. But, it's a good idea if you are prone to drunk night mailing and you can preset your risk times too, if, like me, you do all your drinking during the day. Why, I'm only writing this post to pass the time til 8 pm. Ahem.
I also love the idea that some messer at Google came up with this after sending some dodgy email to someone - afterwards, full of regret, they were all ' hang on, I work in GOOGLE, I can use my powers for good, not evil, and prevent this from happening other total hangers in the world!' If anyone knows of a way to get the Gmail genie to appear at 4 am and shake its head disapprovingly at you when you are about to send that text - please let me know.
P.S - Coconut Records - Nighttiming
All this talk of night time reminds me of my favourite song from Coconut Records - Why, yes! that is diminutive dreamboat actor Jason Schwartzman's band. Many's a night I spend drinking, trying to trick Gmail into letting me send emails, brushing up on my sums, listening to this song:
You may be sick of all the John Hughes related 80s movie nostalgia at the minute but here's some more anyway - these aren't all John Hughes movies so that makes it ok - some great clips from Mannequin ("Just because Jonathan's fallen in love with a piece of wood - it doesn't make him a dummy!" ), The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink and Footloose - all set to Phoenix's Lisztomania - check it - the mash up works really well:
Ah, the brat pack. where are they now? ( Yikes. I used to have posters of him on my wall!)
Eric Warheim is an american music video director and a comedian - you can check out his comedy and some of his other music videos on his site www.timanderic.com.
